Stoke City vs Derby County - Heated Stalemate expected at the bet365 Stadium

Both teams are tipped to get on the scoresheet at the bet365 Stadium this weekend

Stoke City have one of the strongest and most experienced squads in the EFL Championship (Getty Images)

Stoke City vs Derby County Tips, Predictions & Free Bets

Nathan Jones's Stoke City welcome Derby County to the bet365 Stadium this weekend in the EFL Championship.

There has been some bad blood between the two sides for the last couple of seasons, and a score draw is our tip for the game.

Stoke City vs Derby County Match Details

Date

Saturday 17th August

Venue

bet365 Stadium

Competition

EFL Championship

Time

15:00 (GMT +1)

Stoke City Form & Team News

Stoke City have one of the best squads in the Championship. Unfortunately for their fanbase, that quality has yet to materialise on the pitch and the club find themselves still reeling from last year’s failures.The Potters have lost both of their opening two games so far this campaign. They were defeated 2-1 at the bet365 Stadium on the opening day thanks to a spectacular goal from QPR, they then lost 3-1 away at Charlton last weekend thanks to two late goals . Nathan Jones’s side have struggled to find a system that works for them so far, but there have been some positives this campaign. They picked up a convincing win away at Wigan in the English League Cup this week, with young Nathan Collins grabbing the winner. Nathan Jones has a strong squad to choose from but he is likely to favour the 11 he has started in the last two games. Some of the performances in the League Cup will have made him stand up and take notice though. Young Tyrese Campbell made an impact off the bench after also having an impressive pre-season, and Jones may consider giving him some game on Saturday. Scott Hogan also came close to grabbing a debut goal for the club and will want to impress if he is given any time to play on Saturday afternoon. Sam Vokes is likely to continue to lead the line for the Potters though. Despite their poor start to the season, Stoke are still favourites for this match and are priced at 2.25 with bet365 to pick up the win.

Derby County have had a good start under Phillip Cocu (Getty Images)

Derby County Form & Team News

Derby were also victorious in the League Cup this week. The Rams picked up a 1-0 victory thanks to a late goal from Lee Buchanan. Phillip Cocu’s side have had a reasonable start to their Championship season. They won their opening game 2-1 away at Huddersfield thanks to two goals from Tom Lawrence but were left frustrated after a lifeless encounter with Swansea at Pride Park ended 0-0 last weekend. Lawrence has been a lively presence for The Rams over the last few games and is likely to feature in their starting 11 on Saturday, Martin Waghorn is also likely to lead the line against Stoke after sitting the game out on Tuesday. Derby are currently at 3.56 to win the match, which is a tempting offer. A draw feels like a safer choice though and is available at 3.10.

Stoke City vs Derby County- Heated stalemate

Stoke City and Derby County has become a bit of a heated tie over the last year, largely thanks to Stoke taking manager Gary Rowett away from the Rams. Rowett is not in the dugout for either side on Saturday though. His replacement Nathan Jones has been struggling to find any sort of consistency at Stoke. The Potters have not won in eight league games, losing four and drawing four. Phillip Cocu has had a good start to life at Derby. He has won two and drawn one of his first three games but Stoke will arguably be his toughest test yet. Fans are hyped up about the arrival of Wayne Rooney to the club, which could turn out to be more of a distraction than anything else. Tom Ince, who is going to be one of Stoke’s key attacking threats is also an ex-Derby player, which means he will be fired up to perform on Saturday afternoon. With all of these factors thrown in, a lively and quite intense draw seems like the most likely outcome on Saturday.

Stoke City vs Derby County Tips- Back a score draw

Stoke seem unable to get a win at the moment and Derby are still finding their feet under new manager Phillip Cocu. Five of Stoke’s last six games have ended in a draw at the bet365 Stadium, and the same amount have seen both teams score. Both teams to score is a healthy bet at 1.83, while a 1-1 scoreline is also great value at odds of 5.50 with bet365. A draw at 3.10 with bet365 is the best value bet available on the game and is our tip for the match.

Verdict

Stoke and Derby look to cancel each other out in a game that is likely to see some goals scored on Saturday.

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